free air subs suck, just didn't want to be the one to offend someone here. now if you do want a freeair, I'll sell ya the kenwood excelon 10 that I just took out of mine ;)

totally agree with jl as well. was going to go 12w3, but ended up getting a steal on a new 12w6. sucker is a beast..

11-24-2009, 07:04 PM

Razzman

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brianinpdx

*no crawling through our dumpster for factory seconds though :)

Well there just went my day! :p

11-24-2009, 08:02 PM

cab13367

Guys,

Thanks for the advice and for schooling me on dual voice coil subs. Much appreciated.

As for going all out and building a sub box, using a 12" sub, etc., etc., I don't want to go thru all that trouble. I don't need competition level sound and don't want to take up additional room in the footbox area. So I am going to try and see first if I can make the stock location work with a 10" sub (the max that will fit in there).

It was sounding pretty good with the old amp I was running, hits plenty hard for me, but it was just a little boomy. So I am going to try a few things to tighten it up and if it works, and I get plenty of volume out of the new amp at 4 ohms, then I'm good to go.

Thanks,

Al

11-24-2009, 09:07 PM

viking

Quote:

Originally Posted by sandm

thanks for the post.. dead on..

totally agree with jl as well. was going to go 12w3, but ended up getting a steal on a new 12w6. sucker is a beast..

I've got a 12w3 (not installed yet). Should be enough for my boat! That baby is an upgrade from the 12w1 that rocks anyway. I've had them in vehicles before. Let me know how she sounds!!

11-24-2009, 10:05 PM

sandm

I had a pair of the 10w1's and they were great subs. rocked..

I can't wait to hear this one installed. wanted a pair, but no room.

11-24-2009, 10:31 PM

jmvotto

Al, try the existing sub with the new amp Momo with the 5th channel on the kicker. should sound just fine especially with the bass knob for types of tunes. You foot well is taller than my obv and you may need some polyfill to dampen the boominess.

Al - sounds like everyone has you on the right track and I don't see anything wrong with your plan with the ten.

And just so everyone knows, I don't ever want to come across as slamming anyones ideas here on free air or otherwise.

But if anyone would like a "on the boat demo" of free air sub bass give me a call and I'll grab a rubber matt and a big ole wooden spoon. We can turn up the stereo and wack away at that matt !!! Hehe. Oh wait, we got no sunny days here anymore. Dangit!

-Brian

ps: on a sincere note, let us know how it turns out.

11-25-2009, 02:18 PM

sandm

brian, your thoughts on the epicenter to "restore" some lackluster bass in a freeair enclosure?
haven't used one in years, but I remember it did a better job of "enhancing" bass without just cranking up a gain pot and distorting the sound worse....

11-25-2009, 06:44 PM

EarmarkMarine

Epicenter in a boat. If its okay I'll try and answer this one.

An epicenter is an awesome processor for restoring compressed fundamentals to older analog recordings. It works very well in an enclosed vehicle that benefits from a 'cabin effect' which constitutes a second order per octave rising characteristic as the bass declines in frequency. At these lower frequencies the woofer is extremely well damped (controlled so to speak) due to the increasing air mass rigidity in the small and confined cabin of a car, truck or SUV. But here comes the "however."

In the open field environment of a boat without such leverage it requires many times the power and places an inordinate mechanical and electrical stress on the woofer trying to achieve the same output level in the bottom octave. For just a little bit of emphasis in the lowest registers it will suck the life out of the dynamics and tonal construction, especially at higher volumes. Using a free-air would only compound the challenge. I might feel differently if you were running a very serious 15-inch with lots and lots of reserve power.

A more efficient way to increase the overall bass output in an open air boat is to slightly expand the woofer's bandwidth by crossing it over a little higher than in a vehicle for instance. After that, having the right woofer to enclosure to amplifier to in-boat loading combination will make a world of difference.

On another subject, several of the woofers mentioned in this thread are definitely not suitable for 'free-air' applications (like the Excelon or Polk MOMO). What exactly are we describing by "free-air"?

David
Earmark Marine

11-25-2009, 07:35 PM

Razzman

David, the "free-air" reference in this case is the drivers footrest in the Moomba, which when cut open is a hollow open cavity into the ski locker to port and towards the stern of the boat for wires and cables to run through. SC uses this location for the optional factory sub and many have installed one there. That's why Al (Cab13367) is asking these questions about free-air.

Also, at what point do you recommend crossing over on the sub freq to increase the overall bass as you mentioned?